lov2flyrc

My Feedback: (24)

Got mine well dialed in over the weekend. Soon as I manage to get caught up I will measure my throws and final CG. I found the Gripen to fly exceptionally well and landings are now as expected. I do agree, the SM suggested throws are off and will supply them with revised settings to assure all have the same success I have had with this airframe.
Todd

basimpsn

My Feedback: (5)

Todd have some good flights on is gripen this pass week end at FJIR. So he would have the latest update.

wojtek

My Feedback: (73)

My gripen flew for the first time this Sunday. My friend Adil flew it on the maiden. I really did not know what to expect from the plane, and Adil is a seasoned, and very controlled pilot, and this worked out great as some quirks needed to be worked out for the second flight, Adil did an awesome job flying the Gripen. I had the plane set up pretty much the way you posted your setup with a 140mm CG, it has a p80 for power, and weighs around 23 – 24lbs dry … The plane flew great !! its very fast, and slows down as it plows through turns. On the first landing, the trunion on the nose gear (Robart 630) broke on landing … This is a pretty smooth grass field, and i dont think this should have happened

I replaced the trunion and this morning I took the Gripen out for a ride. Crosswind was at around 15 mph, at 90 deg to the runway , so it was not optimal, but I refused to pack up and not go up .. I set the brakes, went to full power and let go of the brakes ½ way through the spoolup… plane rotated nicely, and I held it shallow for around another 100’ and the pulled out … it was nice and smooth. Flew it around a few laps, and did some low passes .. the plane looks great in the air, but sometimes its hard to see looking at it from the side (mine being all grey may have something to do with it too ) at certain angles. After 5 min, I did some slow, and then decided to drop in for landing. The plane glides in really nicely, and is very predictable. Really easy to grease this one in ! however I will have to work on some even slower power on, nose high approaches next … .. the plane settled down on the mains, and 20 – 30’ later the nose toutched, rock solid to the ground, and no tendency to bounce ,,, it just stuck ! .. 50 – 60’ later, I hit the brakes, and …. The nose collapses !! the darn trunion broke again !!! ahhh !! im disappointed in the low quality metal that Robart casts these pieces out of !! with a backward load off of the retract, these snap too easily !! I will look to see if someone can machine up some of these out of billet aluminum, … the only other alternative will be trying the 635 gear, but then I would have to rewoek the nose gear mounts a bit …. For now, im replacing the trunion again, and will go fly again tomorrow morning …

I look forward to seeing how Todd ended up setting his up after several flights …. I can tell already that this will be a very fun plane, and definitely has a lot of room to explore its flight potentials and characteristics …

Aero65

My Feedback: (2)

Great Job! Mario, glad to hear that all went well.

Congrats Gudmund, im glad to hear the Gripen is ok. I think if you follow the throws that Mario and Todd are working on then things will work out well. We have found that in high speed flight that you will need very small canard throws to keep the energy up. If you use lots of canard it will tend to bleed the energy off in the turns.

Way to go Wojet, and Adil. On pavement the 630's seem good but on Grass I guess it is too much. I have seen the 635's and they look like they will work well and will fit with minor modification. I beleive the Spring Air 402 unit will also fit. The Diamond Aurora retracts look good too.

XCaliber

My Feedback: (104)

Thank you Duke,
I am very happy with my SM Gripen now.
Wojtek, I had the same problem with the Robart 630's in the beginning, the nose trunion broke like a twig. I upgraded to the Robart 635 Euro gear and this are bullet proof. I did have to do some minor modification but well worth it.
Mario

Peter A

My Feedback: (34)

XCaliber,
Thanks for your input on the set-up. Been away for a couple of days and have not had a chance to read the thread.
Regards
Peter

XCaliber

My Feedback: (104)

Your welcome Peter,
Remember that we still have to see Todd's findings so we can refine it even more.
Mario

wojtek

My Feedback: (73)

I have been staring to fly the crap out of my Gripen … Last flight was pretty much full throttle (p80) all the way…. Banking and yanking hard bleeds off a lot of air speed, and at full throttle, doing a continuous full elevator turn will stall the plane out pretty cool … you ca really slalom this thing around .. I am finding this to be a very fun jet to fly. Maxes out at around 160 - 170 mph, and i will have a local cop check with a radar gun for us next time .. I also got to test the planes glide and durability characteristics today … I flamed out on a pass, 200’ up and 200’ out, going around 80 mph .. when the engine quit, the plane pitched up, and lost a lot of speed … nose slightly down and left turn towards the runway … almost made it to line up, but landed diagonally … I flared on the runway , and the nose gear block broke, and the plane skid onto taller grass off the runway. 1. the plane glided at 24lbs at least 100 feet further than I would have expected it .. I though it would have sunk like a rock, but it did not, and came in well …2. the plane is durable as hell !!! not even a crack in the landing gear mounts !! (all I reinforced these with was some aeropoxy) ….. Now that I’m comfortable with the plane , I think I will take the ailerons to 16mm up/down and set up for full canard travel for some 3d type stuff … For grass flying, I think I will set up the gear on ¼ wire with a spring loop on top, as the struts I have from Skymaster are a bit soft and bend very easily .. no issue on pavement, but grass will eat them … they bend just above where the inside piece (bottom) ends .. it’s the outer case that bends easily … This is one of the most solid and strong planes I had seen in ARF form year .. by the way, the engine flamed out due to a low battery voltage, so well … oopppss .. my fault .. I will also set the landing gear with an electronic sequencer for the doors .. no more of this push button door valve crap and wheel collars around the lines for timing .....



Wojtek

Falcon 64

HEY, THATS GREAT; WOJTEC![>:]
I guess it`s hope for others then?

And soon there will be a P 120 or similar?[8D]

Congrats!

Gudmund

B777

Flown the Gripen..11kgs wet. More than enough power. The control throw settings are critical. I fly mine with CG at 135mm and suggested throw from Todd but elevators need 60% dual rate to tame her down. Canards need to be deactivated during takeoff and landing. She will fly aggressively even without the canards. If you are not sure about the canards setting or your skill, deactivate them. 8mm movement on canards is more than enough to fly a very tight turn. You can increase this to 12mm when your skill or experience with the Gripen increases. Just my thought and findings.

Thanks Todd for your info and suggestion.

B777

wojtek

My Feedback: (73)

i fint that the canards actually let you land a lot slower (with power on) and with more descent controll over the plane .. you just have to be prepared for how they react .... with only 5mm canard travel, and a 140 CG, i was not able to efectively slow the plane down .. still settled in nicely, but with a cg closer to 150 and around 20mm of canard travel, the plane floats to the ground like a buterfly ... as for agresive flight, its never agresive enough for me .. i plan on goin to full physical deflection on the canards and see what the plane does in the air ... ( im hoping for somehting like a cobra, or at least a wall)



Wojtek

B777

Wojtek..your flying skill probably surpasses many of the average jet flyers . But.....for beginner/intermediate's first Gripen flight, be gentle with the canards specially if you have never flown one before and keep the CG at 135-140mm until you feel more confident. With the settings I have, you can takeoff and land the Gripen the same way as you would with the F-15. True that you can slow her down real slow and float in for landing with canards/power, but for biginner, that's a difficult attittude to achieve and to get out of if you need to go-around or abort landing...remember that you still have full canards authority when you hit the throttle and most likely to pull up...just be cautious and look out for that canards stall. Just take it very easy on the first few flights then you can go all out with Wojtek manuevers . In my opinion, Gripen is just a joy to fly and definitely a trainer at lower throw settings.

B777

Falcon 64

This is what I`m up to now.
Just like the full scale..

Some would say it`s not nessacery, but I`ll get some goodies because of this:

Take-off flaps: Lifts moore progressively, and creates a clean take-off.
Full flaps: Steady and calm landings.
Smaller ailerons: Moore accuracy, higher slack margin. Still effective enough to rock and roll.
Spoilers: Flaps and ailerons in opposite directions for speedbrake. (butterfly)

The whole thing trimmed with the canard for each position.
Poor finish due to todays rub-down before painting.

Regards

Gudmund

3DHELINUT

My Feedback: (3)

Gudmund where did you get the missiles for the gripen? what are there dimensions?

I would like to add them to my gripen.

Also let us know how she fly's with the new configuration, She looks good!

Alan....

2605

hello Gudmund i am waiting to recive my sm gripen from the us soon
i wonder where u got those sidewinders from? i can see that u have taped them on.

Falcon 64

It`s ment to be lookalike AIM 120 AMRAAM`s.
But they was made in a hurry, app two hours. Just for the fun of it. Wrong colour too
AIM 9 Sidewinders would barely stretch 3/4 of the rails, as they (9) are much smaller.
I`ll load the Gripen later on.

Regards

Gudmund

Falcon 64

Almost ready now.
Queued hurricanes and flood-warnings, are not forecasts as we like them...[]

Geardoors and a pilot is next.
Humbrol and humbug for finish.

Gudmund

Falcon 64

Some moore.

AsiaSRC

Interesting! look forward to any video footage?
regards

Albert
AsiaScale RC

Rob B.

My Feedback: (7)

Hello all:

I completed two test flights today with my Skymaster Gripen, what a great flying model. Take offs were no problem, stalls were at such a high angle of attack that the model was almost vertical, with a departure to the right and an recovery within a couple of hundred feet. Landings are quite slow with a normal flare, with a little power it looks like you could scrape the tail. My model is powered by a BMT-120ks, the CG is a 130mm and all the throws are as indicated in the directions, with some expo on the elevator and ailerons. I flew with the canard both on and off, it flys better in my opinion with it on all the time.

Rob Baker

Peter A

My Feedback: (34)

Congratulations Rob...I am looking forward to testing mine when we get better weather....
Any pictures of your flight?

Thanks
Peter

2605

just got my Gripen today

Peter A

My Feedback: (34)

Congratulations. I am sure you will enjoy building it.
I am waiting for better weather to test fly mine.

Peter

2605

thanks do you have a picture of your rudder instaltion?[8D]

Peter A

My Feedback: (34)

Sure